Off to the Valley

Last week, in between the first day of school, two doctor's appointments, back to school night, and a work day that began at six in the morning, Chad and I drove Elizabeth to Fresno to check on her Valley Fever.

It was an insanely long day that started with me going to work for a few hours and ended when I pulled into the driveway at nine that night.

Elizabeth slept all the way to Fresno. She woke up, donned her baby carrier, baby, and sunglasses. She grabbed her purse and held my hand while we walked up the animal topiary lined path. A few feet from the door, she pulled me to a stop.

"I've been here before."

"Yep."

"This is the doctor."

"It is."

"Am I getting a shot?"

"I don't know. We'll ask the doctor."

We walked to the elevator and down a purple painted hallway where we were greet by the receptionist and proceeded to wait a half hour to be seen.

Elizabeth squirmed and cried a little during her exam. After the last few months, she doesn't trust doctors not to hurt her, no matter how gentle they are. We got the good news that her latest lab work showed her levels have gone way down and we won't need to go back for another two months.

And then we got the bad news.

Even though we didn't need a chest x-ray, she needed additional lab work. Thankfully, for the first time, we got a phlebotomist who was able to draw blood with the first poke.

After the lab work, we went shopping. Elizabeth roamed Claire's and Bath and Body Works, purchasing a mini lotion and stick on earrings. We ate lunch at PF Chang's and made the trek to the Disney store where my maternal trauma at seeing Elizabeth get poked almost resulted in her receiving a $50 princess dress. Fortunately for my budget, she just wanted bubble gum.

We drove home with a sleepy baby in the back seat and hopes that our next visit will end with a "Nice to meet you, have a great life."